What's the magic behind QR codes and how you can use it to market your business

**cborodescu** · 01-24-2011 09:37 AM

You can think about QR codes that they are the bar codes’ bigger brothers, born in a more digitalized era, thus have a great deal of new possibilities. While in the past, they were used to keep track in a vehicle manufacturing in Japan, the society has given them a much broader use, which includes marketing and PR campaigns, vCards, entertainment and even artwork. This one, for example, is made out of yummy waffles.

Now, what is so great about QR codes? Apart from the nice and intelligent shape and form, the fact that it holds much information in such little space is the key ingredient that holds them on the market. That and the fact that are a new thing in technology and we all know how we are suckers for new tech stuff. Let’s see how we can use these codes for your successful marketing campaign, by looking into others’ innovative ways of using QR codes to their benefits.

QR=Marketing=Love

Thinking QR codes equals thinking marketing and that is all to it. Whether we’re talking about transporting users from printed materials to mobile sites for a specifc call to action, involving information capture, promotional opt-in, quickly delivering consideration- and loyalty-building information and multimedia on products and services directly to consumers’ phones for ongoing consumption, or providing e-coupons to consumers to drive conversion, loyalty and/or repeat purchase, we see one single common thing – the gain.

Letterbox Deals, a premium quality product coupon catalogue, has had a successful marketing campaign on the Australian market. The campaign objective was to build awareness of the Letterbox Deals brand with Sydney households by giving away some notebook computers. The consumers in these households had the opportunity to enter a competition via 2 options: website or QR code. The results? 25% of entries submitted via QR code to mobile site submission, 60% of consumers downloading QR code reader to enter competition. And all this happened in 2009.

Mobile Marketing

Nowadays the mobile marketing uses are more and more popular since the codes create a bridge between printed media and virtual media which allows for example a newspaper to run a printed advert in the paper with a QR code attached, leading to a mobile website. The user who spots the advert can simply scan the code with their mobile phone and this opens up a different world and advertising experience. Print media is generally pretty expensive with regards to ad space but if you would take advantage of QR codes and mobile technology that scannable code can lead to a mobile-optimized site with video, polls, brochure download, discount coupons and much more.

QR Codes Famous Use Cases

E-ticketing applications are now on the lookout, where you simply purchase your tickets online, receive a QR code on your mobile phone, which is then scanned when you show up at your event. No more looking under the bed for the tickets you bought last month but cannot find for the concert tonight. And even if you delete your E-ticket from your phone by mistake you have a simple solution: just text the the support line to receive a copy.

With alternative paintball, QR kill was first seen in Barcelona shopping centre back in January 2008. Before the game begins, the players decide a scenario, a modality and a meeting point. Each player has a QR Code fixed to his or her back which contains their name and telephone number. Instead of a projectile heading their way, a mobile phone is pointed at the QR code, which sends an SMS ‘your dead’ message to the recipient. Moreover, for those of you who have indulged in a game of paintball I’m sure you’ll agree this variation is much less painful.

Even the top rated guys at Coca Cola are using QR Codes with Cmode to enable drinks vending machines to allow Japanese customers to redeem collected loyalty points for free drinks.

In 2007, the Pet Shop Boys released a single criticizing the British national identity card concept. The single came complete with a QR code linked to the critique. Sure, you don’t like the Pet Shop Boys, but it is still interesting to see that the codes can be used to subvert regimes.

In July 2010, Calvin Klein Jeans launched a QR code billboard on the corner of Lafayette and E. Houston in New York City. The code directed users to a provocative 30-second branded video.

At the SXSW Interactive Festival in Austin, TX, Chevy afixed QR codes on pre-production models of the Volt and Cruze, two new car models that the company hopes will drive new growth for the brand. The codes, when photographed with a camera phone, launched a microsite highlighting key vehicle features.

Allure magazine gave away more than $725,000 worth of beauty products to smartphone users who scanned a Microsoft Tag within its August 2010 issue. The publication incorporated Microsoft’s 2D Tags in a multichannel contest that used print, mobile Web and SMS technology.

Our thoughts

We view QR codes as a promising technology that will provide marketers with a unique channel for bridging offine and online consumer behavior for unbelievable brand engagement. They are simple to use, quick, funny looking and very, very engaging!